Deep ruby; tight rim. Toast/coffee bean/cedar/truffle tones with a refined, lightish, fresh blackberry/raspberry aroma. The modern palate reflects the nose with clean, bold, darker fruit and a chalky finish with resolved tannins/texture. Quite bodied; balanced with 13.5% ABV. The grapes Merlot 90 % and Cabernet franc 10% on a limestone plateau with hillside clay and sand on clay are all handpicked, which points to fuller ripeness and structure. Barrel fermented(50% new); oak aged(50%);16 months of ageing; Michel Rolland was the consultant.
It is close to Châteaux Beau-Séjour Bécot and Grand Mayne; hence, some apparent resemblances. The coffee tones recall some of the vintages I tasted from modern Bordeaux wineries. Some opined that 2015 is the best vintage ever from this Chateau. This wine is of great value; it is a Grand Cru Classe. Scores are reasonably high: 94 Falstaff and 95RP. Other scores include 91 The Wine Independent and 91 Jeff Leve.
Neal Martin wrote for Wine Advocates, awarded it RP95 and said, 'The 2015 Franc-Mayne has a refined and detailed bouquet with blackberry, raspberry coulis and a touch of cedar emerging from the glass. This is a classy bouquet in the making. The palate is fresh and vibrant, with succulent red berry fruit overlaying a delicate lattice of tannin. Precise, focused and elegant without compromising the fruit, this is perhaps the best wine I have tasted from this estate. Bravo!
Neal Martin, Wine Advocate (April 2016). Edited.
Updated: Mar 29, 2023
Deep ruby colour with a tight rim. Reflecting the terroir of St Estephe with a certain uniqueness in style, this 2011 from a blend of Merlot 33%, Cabernet Sauvignon 59%, Cabernet Franc, and Petit Verdot. Broodingly rich and oozing sweet, it gives on the nose fleshy plum and cassis fruit. In this sense, this wine is simple. If you bottle-decant it for 3 hours + to reveal its real potential to include tones of the earth and funk, this wine, in another sense, is complicated.
By now, even this lighter 2011 vintage gives a full palate of concentration, flavour, textured tannins, dense black fruits, hints of boysenberry, cedar, a touch of pepper, a certain roundness, slick and smooth finish that is still a bit of reserve. Indeed there are strong supporters for this wine even though some would say there is a shortage of fruitiness by Cru Standard. After all, the vintage 2011 is not easy to come by on the market. Chunky and not as refined, it could do with being a degree less macerated and less oak. But this style is iconic of Lafon Rochet, of excellent value for its quality and stylistics, and probably can keep well for another three years.
Scores are stable.
93 Tim Atkins. This isn't a wine for the fainthearted, but you must admire how it screams St Estèphe at the top of its voice: brooding, super rich and very tannic. The oak is perhaps a bit heavy-handed, but there's plenty of sweet, fleshy plum and cassis fruit. An ambitious wine that should soak up the barrel staves in the bottle. 10+ years. Edited.
WE92Wine Enthusiast
This wine has great potential—you can tell from the firm tannins, tight acidity and closed texture. Initially, black currant flavours are touched with dark, dusty notes, but they finish with a more juicy character on the aftertaste. Drink from 2017. Edited.
Medium ruby with a tight ruby rim and violet hues, 2013 Poujeaux recalls some complexities(60% cabernet sauvignon, 35% merlot, 5% Petit Verdot, 5% cabernet franc) and 'class' of some excellent crus: layers of toasts, inks, lead pencil, graphite, dark fruit(blackcurrants), tones of classy new oak, minerals, melted tannins, tones of animal and game below the new, dark, berry fruity backbone.
On the palate, it's an easy, enjoyable wine, ready to drink today. The chalky finish gives structure and exceptional grip. It finishes medium-bodied, 拖, with a good length and rounded tannins. Certain sophistication sets this 2013 Poujeaux apart from other humble Cru Bourgeois.
Scores are not too high; hence we can still get this delightfully fruity 2013 at this price. DD91; also WS89.
